I have no doubt that relegation will be the key priority this season but these reviews seem very imbalanced.

If you look through out squad there are 4/5 players that all the bottom half teams would bite their hands off to sign - Dunk, Knockaert, Stephens, Duffy, March. It also strikes me that the signings we have made genuinely strengthen us in positions of weakness.

I'm also unsure why Newcastle are tipped by so many to finish so comfortably in mid-table.

Saying this, predictions mean very little. I'm very content with the signings the club have made, its strategy to stay in the Premier League, and I'm confident that if we go down we'll be in a strong position as a club going forwards.

listen mate ...that iosfar too a sensible post for this board at this time opf year ....were either winning theleagueor were going down ....stop being a flarsk/////...xx

Couldn't give a toss about his predictions. I'd be more concerned if he was right about JMD's loan to Lincoln had been made permanent. He's one of our juniors that I'm hoping to see get a chance in our first team before too long.

Notice how all these journalists and 'experts' predicting us and Huddersfield to finish in the bottom two never justify it? He hasn't mentioned one negative or area of weakness in his assessments of either of us.

Perhaps it would be more appropriate for them to just admit that they know **** all about either club and are predicting us both to go down because we're not 'big' clubs?

**** 'em, we'll prove them wrong.

They justify Newcastle doing well because of Rafa.

But Rafa isn't all that as proven by the championship. Lazy journalism.

One of my bugbears with football on TV is the woeful level of punditry as compared with other sports.

There is a laddish culture that flows from the dressing room on retirement and into the studio. There has only been one ex-player with a even half a brain on 25 years of Prem football - Gary Neville. The rest is tabloid media junk. If you want any insight you have to listen to the football journalists like Martin Samuel, Henry Winter, Oliver Holt or Guillem Balague. Listening to the likes of Shearer, Lawrenson, Jamie Redknapp, Michael Owen is soul-destroying - they are sloppy and they wing it.

Quite happy with this like being the underdogs lets just enjoy the ride what an achievement it is just getting here and I think we might just surprise a few.

Its clear from the quality and numbers we have for midfielder positions that this is where CH sees us winning or loosing this season.
I see a high tempo midfield which is not sustainable week in week out but the numbers we have will allow CH to rotate these players on a regular basis, back line is pretty set with cover as is the keeper just the one up front that needs support such the likes of Ulloa, Woods or Grey however I would not be surprised if it ends up being a player from abroad someone like Gross, Propper or for that matter Ulloa someone which in all honesty most of us has never heard of